The primary mission of the School of Veterinary Medicine is to provide an environment that nurtures and promotes a spirit of active, independent and self-directed learning, teaching, research and service in veterinary medicine and related disciplines. The school recognizes those values and attributes that promote caring for animals and members of society yet, it is cognizant of the rapid advances in biomedical knowledge and technology. Veterinary graduates are instilled with a firm knowledge of basic concepts, principles and associated facts which can be applied to public service.The School of Veterinary Medicine was established in 1945 and has been accredited by the Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Association since 1949. A professional four-year course leading to the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.) degree was begun with the entering class in September of 1945; the first class graduated in 1949. A graduate program was organized in August, 1971.Tuskegee University veterinary alumni work in more than 40 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands and in several foreign countries. The school has graduated approximately 75 percent of the nations black veterinarians and approximately 92 percent of veterinarians from other countries who have studied in the United States for the professional degree.Since 1949, the school has been designated as a regional institution serving the several cooperating states associated with the Southern Regional Educational Board to provide training in veterinary medicine for students of the southern region. States, territories and countries not included in the regional plan program that have contractual agreements with the School of Veterinary Medicine for training are: New Jersey, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Haiti, and the U. S. Virgin Islands.